eukaryotic

American  

[yoo-kar-ee-ot-ik] / juˌkær iˈɒt ɪk /

Sometimes eucaryotic

adjective

Biology.

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of a eukaryote, an organism whose basic structural unit is a cell containing specialized organelles and a membrane-bound nucleus.

   Some scientists believe that the greatest transition of life in the history of Earth is the evolution of eukaryotic cellular life forms from more primitive prokaryotes.

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Etymology

Origin of eukaryotic

First recorded in 1955–60; eukaryot(e) ( def. ) + -ic ( def. )

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

eukaryotic

Crown eukaryotes, which are among the earliest eukaryotic forms scientists are trying to trace, played a crucial role in the emergence of complex life on Earth.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 17, 2026

Just last year, researchers there discovered some of the oldest known eukaryotic microfossils, dating to roughly 1.75 billion years ago.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 17, 2026

Using samples from Roscoff and a second collection in Bilbao, Spain, the team conducted one of the most comprehensive studies ever of the cytoskeleton -- the filament network that supports and organizes eukaryotic cells.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 2, 2025

A 2013 study constructed a family tree of all the organisms known to have vaults and concluded they date back to a hypothetical last common eukaryotic ancestor billions of years ago.

From Science Magazine ● Jun. 6, 2024

Spirochetes, like the ones attached to M. paradoxa, joined up and became the cilia of eukaryotic cells.

From "The Lives of a Cell" by Lewis Thomas